A couple of friends and I flew to Vegas, then set off on a wildly scenic road trip through Southern Utah, with stops for everything from Shakespeare under the stars to hikes through jaw-dropping red rock canyons.

Our journey: It took us to Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, Cedar Breaks and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments. We planted our hiking sticks in each — inhaling great gulps of pinion pine- and juniper-scented air. We were awed by ancient petroglyphs and the wacky wonder of Suessian hoodoos. As we trekked up one slot canyon and down another, we embraced the silence — a hypnotic sound interrupted only by the pad of our own footfalls, the gentle rustle of breeze-teased fir, falling aspen leaves and the occasional birdcall.

Our destination: the Shooting Star Drive-In in Escalante — a nostalgic and apropos finale for our road trip. We slept in vintage Airstream trailers outfitted for glamorous ’50s Hollywood stars; at night we plopped into classic convertibles at a drive-in movie theater of yester-dreams.

We started out on a virtuous note. Crossing into Utah on I-15, we checked in for a couple of days at Red Mountain Resort, a full-service fitness spa in St. George. We signed up for early morning hikes, afternoon yoga, swimming and Zumba. Of course, we booked a massage.

But the place has one serious flaw. The food. It’s way too good and plentiful. Three meals a day are included in the package price — and they’re irresistible. Think Canadian duck with cranberry relish on white bean ragout, New York steak with smoked Gouda cheese mashed potatoes. Think caramel pecan cheesecake, espresso crème brûlée and hot fudge sundaes for dessert. And what’s with the help-yourself basket of fresh-baked cookies? We loved our stay — and worked off at least some of what we consumed.

Next stop Cedar City, home of the Utah Shakespeare Festival, which runs through Oct. 20. The fun starts in early evening, with rollicking Elizabethan song and dance on the green surrounding the theater. We joined picnicking families — and applauded their toddler ballerinas. At show time, we sat under the stars, basking in warm summer breezes, enthralled by this small city’s (population 30,000) Tony-award-winning theater company, now in its 51st year.

Cedar City became our base for guided hikes into Zion’s serene Kolob Canyon — and through the lush wildflower-studded meadows that stretch beyond the upper rim of the immense natural amphitheater that is Cedar Breaks National Monument.

As we trekked, we learned there are no cedars in Utah. “Pioneers misidentified the scrub juniper,” said Cedar Breaks Ranger Rob Whitmore. “But the name stuck. Cedar Breaks has a much sweeter ring than Scrub Juniper Breaks.”

One night we bundled in fleece on the 10,000-foot-high rim of Cedar Breaks for stargazing.

“This is one of the darkest night skies you’ll find anywhere,” said Bob Parks, executive director of the International Dark Sky Association and emcee at our “star party.” “What you’re seeing overhead, 75 percent of the people in the world have never seen.”

We were equally awed by what we saw the next day. Bryce Canyon National Park is in a league of its own. On the rim, we were instantly mesmerized by the fire-to-ice variations of color, the endless fairy-tale castle formations. Down in the depths of the canyon, swallowed by towering, otherworldly red sandstone spires and fanciful hoodoos, we succumbed to the power of the place.

Bryce has more than 50 miles of hiking trails; we wanted a week, but had two days. From sunrise to dusk, we loved every magical minute there, and vowed to return.

“My target demographic is 30-somethings diggin’ the whole retro vibe,” said Shooting Star owner Mark Gudenas. “Most of them have never been to a drive-in theater but have heard all the stories.

“We also attract lots of fit older couples who enjoy the outdoors and want to reminisce.”

Gudenas is a former Bay Area advertising/PR man with a penchant for Hawaiian shirts and straw fedoras. He’s fueled by single-minded little-boy ardor for aerodynamic road toys — and ’50s/’60s nostalgia.

He searched the country to find the eight Airstreams he’s refurbished and outfitted as movie star dressing trailers. My fantasies were fulfilled when I landed in Audrey Hepburn’s trailer, equipped with everything from a slinky black cocktail dress to a copy of an autographed script for “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

The Airstreams are just about as luxurious as they get — furnished with luxury bedding, fully equipped kitchens with Italian espresso makers, flat-screen TVs, and Sirius satellite radio (pre-tuned to ’50s hits). Outdoors on the wood deck, there’s a propane barbecue and a pair of Adirondack chairs.

Still, these are trailers, not the Ritz. Space is tight — designed for couples who enjoy living in small quarters together. Bathrooms are especially cramped, with shower stalls standard in all but Lauren Bacall’s Airstream. There’s a propane-fueled water heater, so cold showers are just a mistaken flip of a switch away.

Gudenas has planted 300 cottonwoods, but there’s still not much shade or other landscaping at Shooting Star. Awnings go up infrequently, when there’s no risk they’ll be tattered by high desert winds.

“By next season, I hope to add a couple of claw-foot bathtubs for soaking outdoors,” Gudenas said. “Eventually, I’m planning a swimming hole with a sandy bottom.”

In the meantime, he serves as a one-man visitors center for his 1.9 million-acre backyard. He provided us with trail maps for hikes (including the petrified forest just next door). He hooked us up with the affable Barnson family for a horseback ride into Dixie National Forest, where we found a grove of aspen, carved with names of previous visitors, back to 1911.

When the sun went down and the full moon rose, we laid claim to our favorites among the vintage convertibles Gudenas has parked at his drive-in theater. Then we rambled off to the Snack Shack Airstream, where we found an OMG collection of 1950s treats — even wax lips and candy cigarettes.

“Go ahead,” Gudenas said. “Relive your misspent youth.”

While Betty Boop skittered across the silver screen, I settled in the back seat of a candy-apple-red Caddy. As a full moon rose over Escalante, I savored a deliciously warm desert breeze, the tantalizing scent of summer sage and a bag of real buttered popcorn.